Astur-Leonese dynasty

The Asturian or Astur-Leonese dynasty (Spanish dinastía asturiana or astur-leonesa), known in Arabic as the Banī Adhfūnsh ("sons of Alfonso"),[1] was the ruling family of the kingdom of Asturias and León from 739 until 1037. Under their rule, the Astur-Leonese kingdom went from a small mountain enclave to one of the dominant powers in Hispania.

The Victory Cross, a symbol of the Astur-Leonese dynasty

The first ruling family of Asturias lasted only two generations: Pelagius (718–737) and Fafila (737–739). The latter was succeeded by his brother-in-law, Alfonso I, the son of Duke Peter of Cantabria and wife of Fafila's sister, Ermesinda. He founded a dynasty that was to last almost 300 years.[2]

For the first century, rule alternated between Alfonso's descendants and those of his brother, Fruela of Cantabria. With the death of Alfonso I's grandson, Alfonso II (842), Fruela's descendants took the throne permanently, headed by Ramiro I. At the death of Alfonso III (910), the kingdom was divided between his sons. The 10th century was thus characterized by family infighting, which was only brought to an end by the succession of Bermudo II in 984. During this period, however, the power of the neighbouring Kingdom of Pamplona waxed and in 1034 the Pamplonans captured León. The rule of the dynasty was brought to an end three years later when Bermudo III was killed in battle against his brother-in-law, Ferdinand of Castile, of the Jiménez dynasty of Pamplona, who thereafter assumed the throne.

The historiography produced by and for the dynasty, such as the Chronicle of Alfonso III (late 9th century), made Duke Peter a descendant of the Visigothic king Reccared I and stressed the dynasty's supposed Gothic descent.[3]

Family tree

Family tree of the Astur-Leonese dynasty

Pelagius King of Asturias 718-737 Peter of Cantabria Favila King of Asturias 737-739 Ermesenda Alfonso I King of Asturias 739-757 Fruela Fruela I King of Asturias 757-768 Adosinda Silo King of Asturias 774-783 Mauregatus King of Asturias 783-789 Aurelius King of Asturias 768-774 Bermudo I King of Asturias 789-791 (abd.) † 797 Alfonso II King of Asturias 791-842 Nepotian King of Asturias 842 Ramiro I King of Asturias 842-850 kinsmen Ordoño I King of Asturias 850-866 Fruela usurper 866 Alfonso III King of Asturias 866-909 (abd.) † 910 García I King of León 909-914 Ordoño II King of Galicia 909-924 & León 914-924 Fruela II King of Asturias 909-925 Galicia & León 924-925 Ramiro pretender Sancho Ordóñez King of Galicia 926-929 Alfonso IV King of León 926-931 & Galicia 929-931 (abd.) † 933 Ramiro II King of León 931-951 Alfonso Fróilaz King of León 925-926 (dethr.) † 932 Ordoño IV King of León 958-960 (dethr.) † c.962 Ordoño III King of León 951-956 Sancho I King of León 956-958 (dethr.) 960-966 Elvira Ramírez regent Bermudo II King of Galicia 982-999 & León 984-999 Ramiro III King of León 966-84 (dethr.) † 985 Alfonso V King of León 999-1028 Ordoño Velazquita Bermudo III King of León 1028-1037 Sancha Ferdinand I of Castile King of León from 1037

Notes

1. Thus Ibn Khaldun in a chapter on "the kings of the sons of Alfonso of Galicia, kings of Spain after the Goths" in his Kitab al-Ibar. See Justin Stearns, "Two passages in Ibn al-Khaṭīb's account of the kings of Christian Iberia", Al-Qanṭara 25.1 (2004): 157–182.
2. Roger Collins, The Arab Conquest of Spain, 710–797 (Basil Blackwell, 1989), pp. 151–152.
3. Julio Escalona, "Family Memories: Inventing Alfonso I of Asturias", in Building Legitimacy: Political Discourses and Forms of Legitimation in Medieval Societies, ed. I. Alfonso, H. Kennedy and J. Escalona (Leiden: Brill, 2004), pp. 223–62.

References

• Stanley G. Payne, A History of Spain and Portugal, Volume 1, Chapter Three (The Early Christian Principalities and the Expansion of Asturias-León)